Ohio Supreme Court rejects part of tow-truck law

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio's high court has tossed out part of a state law regulating tow trucks in a dispute that involved Cleveland's home-rule authority and its ability to adopt and enforce laws on the operators.

The unanimous ruling Tuesday from the Ohio Supreme Court upheld part of the 2003 law that gives the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio the power to regulate towing companies. But the court found unconstitutional a provision that says towing companies are not subject to local laws or rules.

State Supreme Court Justice Judith Ann Lanzinger wrote that that part of the law violates the home-rule authority granted municipalities by the Ohio Constitution. She said it limits the power of municipalities to make their own laws.